Residential and commercial development picking up again in Mattawan

Erik Holladay | Special to the GazetteJoe Alexander, general manager of the company building McGillen's Crossing, said the development is picking up again after a slow 2009. Behind Alexander is a building that will house two restaurants. The 50 acre site is being developed by Powell Commercial Holdings.

MATTAWAN — A fountain spraying water rises from a one-acre pond on farmland along North Main Street where grapes and asparagus were once grown.

Workers there now wield pneumatic nail guns, framing a building facing McGillen Avenue that will house two restaurants.

A small retail complex nearby beckons those in need of coffee, electronics or dry cleaning. A separate building houses a pharmacy. A sign announcing the future site of a credit union sits on the corner of Main and McGillen.

To the east of the commercial buildings, more workers craft condominiums, which will be joined by dozens more as McGillen’s Crossing, a mix of condos and businesses on a 50-acre site in Mattawan, sprouts from the land.

The development, announced in 2008 around the same time nearby testing company MPI Research said it planned to create 3,300 new jobs, is making progress toward building 28 commercial buildings and 120 residential condos after a slow 2009.

Two condo units have been sold and one is going through the purchase process, said Joe Alexander, general manager of Powell Commercial Holdings, the Mattawan developer that started construction on the project two years ago.

“It’s starting to pick up now,” he said of interest in the residential and commercial development. Last year was slow because of the sluggish economy.

Alexander shrugged when asked if he was worried.

“It’s a 10-year project,” he said.

Reshaping the landThe plan is to build 28 commercial buildings of 4,500 square feet each, available for sale or lease, on 23 acres of land surrounding the landscaped pond, which features a footbridge and heron statues. The statues are designed to keep other birds from eating the bluegill and koi fish that are stocked in the pond, Alexander said.

Erik Holladay | Special to the GazetteA pergula and pond are features at the 50 acre McGillen's Crossing development in Mattawan, just south of MPI Research.

Three commercial buildings are up and a fourth is under construction.

The 120 condos will be located on the remaining 27 acres in three- and four-unit buildings, he said. Six condo units in two buildings are completed.

Buyers will be able to chose a two-story or ranch-style 1,425-square-foot floor plan. Full basements will allow for storage or the addition of a bedroom in the space.

The homes are designed to appeal to a mix of families and empty-nesters, Alexander said, and cost between $195,000 and $230,000.

The estimated $50 million development isn’t just reshaping former farmland. It’s helping to redesign downtown Mattawan, moving it closer to Interstate 94, part of a master plan to revitalize the village of about 2,800 residents.

“It’ll be real nice,” Alexander said. “Residents living in these houses will be able to walk to what is essentially a full-service town. The village will be here.

Harriet Kucinich, president pro-tem of the Mattawan Village Council, said she was pleased with the way the development was progressing.

Erik Holladay | Special to the GazetteA commercial building at McGillen's Crossing already holds a computer repair shop, a cleaner and a coffee house.

“McGillan’s Crossing has been going great guns out there,” she said. “It looks beautiful.”

More condos comingA second condo development is also planned for the area just south of MPI Research.

The future site of Ambleside Condominiums sits several hundred yards west of McGillen’s Crossing on McGillen Avenue. A small structure and sign identify it.

Richard Underwood, of NRG Star Construction, which is developing the five acre site, said he is wrapping up the legal paperwork to allow the condo sales to be financed through Federal Housing Administration-backed loans. He said he expects utility lines to be laid this fall and perhaps get the concrete slabs, on which the condos will be built, done before the snow flies.

Construction on the townhouse-style condos, which are expected to cost $139,900 or more, should start in the spring, Underwood said.

The project has been delayed about a year as Underwood adjusted to the economy and financial crisis of last year.

“We positioned ourselves to start to sell in the spring of this year. We wanted to be here as the market turned and everyone started building again, but we made the decision to change the (business) plan,” he said of trying to make the project eligible for FHA-back mortgages.

Family appealAmbleside’s 47 condos are designed to appeal to first-time homebuyers as well as those who are downsizing from larger homes, Underwood said.

Four floor plans range from 1,505 to 1,667 square feet of space with two or three bedrooms available.

“We’ve had a lot of interest in the condos,” he said. “I think next year it will come on stronger.”

Children living in the development will be able to walk to the nearby Mattawan Consolidated School complex, Underwood said.

A key feature in the $7 million development is the energy-efficient layouts designed to keep utility bills low. NRG is a partner with Energy Star, a federal program designed to promote energy-efficient products and practices.

Underwood said he expects the average cost of running utilities in the condos to be about $75 per month, the same as the monthly condo fee for living in Ambleside.

“I like to think we’re a leader in the field, providing top quality construction using the best techniques … and providing a nice sense of community,” Underwood said.

Developers of both projects said they see the other not as competition, but as a way of drawing more interest into the community and potentially more buyers.